I often find myself on my way home from Manhattan and hungry for dinner. Any suggestions for reasonable, safe, reliable, convenient, casual places that are open late and not far out of the way? Even diners are welcome.

My route is usually usually Henry Hudson (9A) > Cross County > Hutchinson > 684 > 84 > exit 5. Sometimes I take the Saw Mill instead. Looking at the map now, I see that I could also take the Bronx River for part of the trip without losing too much time. (http://goo.gl/maps/66PL

Hi folks. I really wish I had thought to post this a few days ago... I'm having a party tomorrow and I want to get Thumann's Pork and Beef natural casing franks. Does anyone know a place in the Danbury area where I can buy them?

I guess, as an alternative, does anyone have a suggestion for another natural casing hot dog that's easier to find?

Hi folks. I tried to make the above recipe tonight and I'm stumped as to what went wrong. A friend of mine has made it many times before (and, in fact, was making it simultaneously tonight 200 miles away) and I've eaten it so I know it works and what it should be like.

I did everything the same (except, as my friend has done many times, added the onions to the package). Usually, when he makes it, the whole apartment starts smelling really good; mine never did. When I took it out 4 hours later, the meat was still tough and the onions not fully cooked. He says that, when he makes it, it's already falling apart after about 2.5 hours.

Ok, so, it didn't cook long enough. What's baffling me is: Why? Afterward, I checked the oven temperature with a thermometer and it was reading about 245 degrees (with the oven set at 250). Seems close enough to me that it wouldn't make hours of difference.

Is it possible that I packed the meat in too tightly? Or could my using a double layer of foil keep heat out?

Just wondering if anyone knows anything about Danbury Ice Cream Shoppe (32 Padanaram Road). It seems to be closed this year, soon to be replaced by a Thai restaurant.

It was remarkably good ice cream, but their prices were way too low and they were always complaining of difficulty turning a profit. If only they were half as good at managing a business as they were at making ice cream, they would have been raking it in!

Anyway, I am in serious withdrawal. The ice cream was top-quality fabulous. Does anyone know if the guy opened a shop somewhere else, or if his ice cream is available anywhere?